Munster SFC Semi-Final Preview: Kerry And Cork Do Battle In Last-Four
By Daire Walsh
Long viewed as one of the biggest rivalries in Gaelic football, Sunday afternoon’s Munster Senior Football Championship semi-final clash between Cork and Kerry at Páirc Uí Chaoimh (throw-in 4pm) has several new dimensions to it.
For the first time since June 18, 2000, this provincial encounter will be a straight knockout affair. In previous seasons, the loser of these games was afforded a second chance through the backdoor – one which they often took with considerable aplomb.
Having been knocked out of Munster by their old foes in 2002, 2006, 2008 and 2009, Kerry exacted revenge on Cork when they subsequently renewed acquaintances at the business end of the All-Ireland championship. While the Leesiders never managed to turn the tables in the same way, their most recent Sam Maguire Cup triumph (2010) arrived just three months after their agonising 1-15 to 1-14 defeat to the Kingdom in a provincial semi-final replay.
The latest showdown between the two counties this weekend is also the first step in Kerry’s quest to create Munster championship history. Should Peter Keane’s men overcome the challenge of Cork – and consequently get the better of either Tipperary or Clare in the competition’s decider – they will become the first county to secure a ninth successive title in the southern province.
Prior to last year’s nail biting showpiece with the Rebels, Kerry had previously achieved an eight in-a-row of Munster championships on two separate occasions – 1958 to 1965 and 1975 to 1982. Under the guidance of the legendary Mick O’Dwyer, the Kingdom were famously on the verge of establishing new ground in the 1983 final – only for Cork to deny them in much the same way as Offaly had ended their surge for a fifth consecutive All-Ireland the year before.
If they are to advance to yet another Munster final, they will have to do so in front of an empty stadium. While Páirc Uí Chaoimh can cater for a capacity crowd of 45,000, current Covid-19 restrictions mean this game will be held behind closed doors.
In comparison to the cauldron-like atmosphere that usually greets a Kerry-Cork clash, this will lead to a rather eerie atmosphere. Even for those watching at home.
Nevertheless, this game will spark great interest – especially after the excitement of their Munster showpiece tussle in 2019. Following a string of comfortable championship victories for Kerry in this fixture (and Cork’s relegation to Division Three of the National Football League), a one-sided contest was anticipated at Fitzgerald Stadium in Killarney.
Yet with Luke Connolly (two) and Brian Hurley shaking the back of the net, Cork threatened to upset the odds. In the end, Kerry registered unanswered points through Sean O’Shea, Stephen O’Brien and Micheál Burns to eventually earn a 1-19 to 3-10 win but it injected fresh life into a Munster championship that had been on the wane for quite a few seasons.
Both teams enter Sunday’s game on the back of successful league campaigns. Unbeaten before the lockdown with five straight wins, Cork returned to competitive action with a comprehensive 5-19 to 0-16 success over Louth on October 17.
This guaranteed their promotion to the second-tier for 2021. Ronan McCarthy’s Leesiders were later given a walkover by Longford ahead of their proposed final round meeting at Pearse Park a week later and this may leave them shorn of match sharpness as a result.
With league finals ruled out due to the short window the GAA have to complete this year’s fixtures, it was decided the NFL Division One would be given to the team that finished at the summit of the table after seven games.
Thanks to victories against Ulster duo Monaghan and Donegal – and other results falling in their favour – Kerry sealed their 21st league title and their second in four seasons.
Already a two-time All Star, Fossa’s David Clifford isn’t displaying any signs of being overburdened by the Kingdom captaincy. In the 0-17 to 0-14 triumph over Monaghan he contributed six points, including one free and two marks.
He maintained this excellent form in their league-clincher against Donegal, with 0-5 (0-4 from open play) in a convincing 2-18 to 0-10 success. Just as he did in the inter-county underage grades, Clifford continues to combine to devastating effect with Kenmare Shamrocks ace Sean O’Shea.
The latter came away with 1-4 in the Donegal win and while the likes of Paul Geaney, Stephen O’Brien, James O’Donoghue and Tommy Walsh can bring plenty of experience to the Kerry attack, there are others who are putting their hand up for selection.
Dr Crokes forward Tony Brosnan won a Munster minor medal with Kerry in 2013 and made his senior championship debut against Clare three years later. He has come into the reckoning in recent weeks having kicked an impressive haul of nine points across the two league encounters with Monaghan and Donegal.
Supplementing the potency of their attack is David Moran, who has been partnered in midfield by Diarmuid O’Connor in their two post lockdown games. Defence has been regarded as Kerry’s achilles heel in recent times, but there are signs of a more cohesive approach under manager Peter Keane.
Their back six are beginning to contribute to the scoreboard on a more consistent basis as well, with an impressive tally of 1-6 being attributed to defenders in the concluding rounds of their league campaign. In an age when Dublin and Mayo have half-backs chipping in with scores on a regular basis, the Kingdom will be happy to add this to their armoury.
When you look at the make-up of this Kerry squad, they appear well-equipped to challenge for not just Munster honours, but also All-Ireland honours.
Still, this game is by no means a foregone conclusion.
Despite being a couple of divisions below them in the spring, Cork are currently the only unbeaten side in the country and will glean some degree of confidence from that fact. Only Kerry scored more than them in the spring, but the Leesiders were just a single point behind their great rivals with one game fewer played.
10 years on from winning an All-Ireland senior title – following in the footsteps of his father Jimmy – Paul Kerrigan is still going strong in the red of Cork. Soon to turn 34, the Nemo Rangers stalwart bagged two goals in Cork’s win over Louth.
Remarkably, he has now won honours in the top three divisions of the league. In just his second year as a senior, he helped Cork towards the NFL Division Two crown of 2009.
An extraordinary run followed for the Rebels in Division One, with Kerrigan playing significant roles in the three in-a-row successes of 2010, 2011 and 2012. There was a massive fall-off in both league and championship form in the latter half of the last decade, but their qualification for the 2019 Super 8s did suggest there was some light at the end of the tunnel.
Whilst they finished this round robin series with three reversals to their name, Ronan McCarthy’s charges did put it up to All-Ireland champions Dublin for 60 odd minutes of their clash at Croke Park last July.
Although goals from Niall Scully, Ciaran Kilkenny and Brian Fenton left them 13 points adrift in the end, the 1-17 accumulated over the course of the contest was the highest tally Dublin conceded on their march to a fifth successive All-Ireland crown.
The experience and know how of Kerrigan will be badly needed if they are to record their first championship win against Kerry since 2012. He was withdrawn 46 minutes into their clash with Louth to be replaced by Mark Collins.
The Castlehaven man has a number of championship campaigns under his belt and showed that he still has plenty to offer with a 1-5 haul. The likes of Killian O’Hanlon and Colm O’Callaghan were also in fine form, while team captain Ian Maguire also chipped in with a goal in a convincing victory.
The return of Ciaran Sheehan at the start of the year following a lengthy stint with Aussie Rules outfit Carlton Blues was seen as a major boost for Cork, having previously lined out alongside Kerrigan in that 2010 All-Ireland success. Unfortunately for McCarthy, he will have to plan without the services of Sheehan who had a minor procedure on his knee in the past few weeks.
Tomas Clancy (Fermoy), Kevin Crowley and Liam O’Donovan are also ruled out, but Sean Powter and Sean White could feature after recently returning to training.
However, the absence of this aforementioned quartet – and Sheehan in particular – will be keenly felt by Cork. Coupled with their relative lack of competitive intensity in recent months, in comparison to the Division One exploits of their opponents, a Kerry win appears to be the most likely outcome of this last-four tie.